From EurekAlert!
The scale of the universe can be difficult to comprehend. Pretend you are going to make a scale model with a basketball representing the Earth and a tennis ball as the Moon. How far would you hold the tennis ball "Moon" from the basketball "Earth?" Most people would hold them at arm's length from each other, but the answer may surprise you: at that scale the balls would need to be held almost 30 feet apart.
A new study by Smithsonian researchers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics shows that students grasp the unimaginable emptiness of space more effectively when they use iPads to explore 3-D simulations of the universe, compared to traditional classroom instruction.
"These devices offer students opportunities to do things that are otherwise impossible in traditional classroom environments," says study leader Matthew H. Schneps. "These devices let students manipulate virtual objects using natural hand gestures, and this appears to stimulate experiences that lead to stronger learning." (Read more)
To help improve your students’ understanding of astronomical scale, try the new Gizmos iPad app with the Solar System Gizmo. Students can explore the solar system and learn the characteristics of each planet. In addition, the Student Exploration Sheets guide learning as students compare the sizes of planets and their distances from the Sun, observe the speeds of planetary orbits, and measure how long each planet takes to go around the Sun.